A 2012 graduate of Harvard Medical School, Dr. Balasanova specializes in evidence-based treatment of co-occurring substance use disorders and psychiatric illness. Since joining UNMC in the fall of 2016, she conceived and developed Addiction Services, a new clinical service line with Nebraska Medicine.

Dr. Balasanova and the other selected physicians will be introduced at the 2017 NMA Annual Membership Meeting Inaugural Dinner on Sept. 8 at the Embassy Suites Hotel in downtown Lincoln.

The academy members will hold a half-day workshop kickoff event on Sept. 15, then will hold half-day meetings once a month for the next nine months. On the fourth week of each month, each of the academy participants will be given individual coaching by key NMA officials.

"I feel proud to represent the College of Medicine and UNMC, as a whole, by participating in this endeavor," Dr. Balasanova said.

MMI's Lichtblau to be published in Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis Katie Lichtblau, a Ph.D. student at the Munroe-Meyer Institute working with adviser Amanda Zangrillo, Ph.D., has had her thesis -- "Resurgence of Destructive Behavior Following Functional Communication Training Implemented with and without Extinction" -- accepted for publication in the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis. Reviewers noted that her "impeccably written manuscript" was "extremely well-designed" and addresses "an important research question in terms of basic science and in terms of application."

Medical student receives Scholar-Athlete Excellence Award from Big East Conference Harrison Lang, a first-year medical student at UNMC who just graduated from Creighton University this spring, was one of the 22 recipients of the Scholar-Athlete Sport Excellence Award from the Big East Conference. The recipients were announced on July 26. The honorees included 16 seniors, four juniors and two graduate students. Lange was the only Creighton athlete recognized.

The Scholar-Athlete Sport Excellence Awards are given to one student-athlete in each sponsored sport in the Big East Conference. Recipients were recognized based on their academic credentials, athletic accolades or performances and volunteer service to the community.

Human Genetics Lab aces College of American Pathologists' accreditation inspection The Munroe-Meyer Institute's Human Genetics Laboratory passed its biennial inspection to remain accredited by the College of American Pathologists (CAP) with no deficiencies, which means that noncompliance was not identified for any requirement on the accreditation checklist. Preparing for a laboratory inspection is a disciplined process that not only involves a particular section but involves the whole laboratory for compliance to safety, environmental concerns, space, patient accessioning and reporting, and specimen integrity. The team performing the unannounced inspection looks for consistent documentation of processes, validation of methods with appropriate references and techniques that meet the standard of medical practice.